Local baseball star Brack Hardee dies at 43

Saturday

Jun 29, 2013 at 12:01 AM

Hardee was a beloved figure who enriched many lives with his charisma, sense of humor and old-school grasp of baseball.

By Chuck CarreeChuck.Carree@StarNewsOnline.com

Brack Hardee, a local baseball star and son of the late, legendary coach Buck Hardee, died at 3:45 a.m. Saturday following a two-year battle with brain cancer.He would have turned 44 on July 2.His mother, Mitzi Watson Hardee, died from cancer in April. Cancer also claimed Buck's life in 2005.Hardee was a beloved figure who enriched many lives with his charisma, sense of humor and old-school grasp of baseball.Retired Major League Baseball outfielder Trot Nixon, retired New Hanover County athletic director Joe Miller and former teammates were among those who portrayed Hardee as happy-go-lucky, baseball-savvy and dedicated."He was a good person,'' Miller said. "His attitude was such that his cup was always half full. He always had a big smile. He always made the best of everything. He got that from his dad.''Buck was easygoing and conscientious and Brack was the embodiment of Buck, a long-time New Hanover High School and Post 10 legion baseball coach for whom the baseball field at Legion Stadium is named."Brack had such an infectious personality and he found positive humor in everything,'' said Trent Mongero, a former teammate at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. "He was the life of the party and he lived his life to the fullest."Hardee starred at New Hanover as a catcher, the same position as his father, who was his coach before retiring following his son's final prep game in 1988.Hardee signed with Mount Olive College, where he played center field as a freshman before transferring to UNCW, where he played with Mongero for one season.Seahawks teammates often marveled at Hardee's knowledge and insights into the game and methods of motivating players."Brack had an uncanny ability to figure people out and get them to play at their best," Mongero said. "As a catcher, he understood the game so well. He was like a coach on the field.""He was like a professional on the field," said former UNCW battery mate Heath Altman. "He could do anything out there because he had been around it his whole life. He knew every position on the field."For two years, 1990-91, Hardee backed up Corey Broome, who eventually caught two seasons in the minor leagues with Detroit.Altman remembers Hardee as an excellent situational hitter. He was a master at the slash – show bunt, then swing away – and routinely executed sacrifice bunts and the hit and run.He also always had a flair for the dramatic. As New Hanover's quarterback in 1986, he twice engineered fourth-quarter comeback victories with touchdown passes.In March 1990, Hardee, in a pinch-hitting role, delivered a no balls, two-strike game-winning single in the 10th inning in a 2-1 UNCW victory over Towson.More than hitting, Hardee brought intangibles and humor when he caught. Ex-teammates said Hardee used to help position fielders and called pitches that exploited hitters' weaknesses."I remember having an 0-2 count and Brack wanted me to throw a knuckle ball, which I did not throw," Altman said. "He wanted me to throw it because I messed around with it in the bullpen."Altman remembers Hardee putting down the sign, which was a knuckle ball grip. He remembers reluctantly throwing it and hitting the Charleston Southern batter in the back with it."He knew he and I were in control out there and we could get the next couple of batters," Altman said. "That was his way of having fun within the game."Mongero, a shortstop, remembers another meeting on the mound after the pitcher became wild. The infielders also gathered around. Mongero wanted to discuss strategy, but Hardee had a better idea."Brack told a joke to the pitcher and they laughed and Brack just said, ‘Go get them,' and headed back behind the plate," Mongero said. "The pitcher threw three straight strikes. He was able to do things the average person could not figure out. Brack just knew how to break the tension in baseball games."Following his playing days, Hardee followed in his father's footsteps, returning to New Hanover as an assistant football and baseball coach who helped Nixon develop into the seventh overall selection by Boston in the 1993 Major League Baseball Draft."Brack is not much older than me," said Nixon, 39. "He was one of those people who gave tirelessly to the game of baseball and to players. He was someone you could talk to and he came from a family with rich athletic tradition and ethics. He was instrumental in my life. He poured his heart and soul into all the kids he worked with."Hardee also helped coach the Wilmington Post 10 American Legion team with an array of coaches, including Mongero and Miller. Hardee was on coach Dave Brewster's staff when the Wildcats captured state 4A titles in 1993 and 1994. "Brack was an extremely good coach," Miller said. "He was born to coach, with it being in his blood."Before moving to Florida in the early 2000s, Hardee was part owner of Wilmington Baseball Academy. In January 2002, Hardee accepted a job at the Bucky Dent Baseball School before it changed to Elev8 Sports Institute, where he served as national director of camps and dean of students before his declining health caused him to return to Wilmington. Hardee married Sarah Morris, the sister of former New Hanover and UNCW player Hamer Morris. Hardee and Morris married in 2003 and had two children, son Hunter and daughter Ella.

Chuck Carree: 343-2262 On Twitter: @StarNewsSports

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